Case 8 – 14th February 2023

Elephant Arrow Manyani

The KWS patrol team saw a lame elephant bull near the road in the Manyani Area and notified the SWT-KWS Tsavo Mobile Veterinary Unit

Immobilisation, examination and treatment

The bull was found alone, it was limping, and it avoided putting any weight on its front left leg. However, the bull was active and moved away when the team approached. Swelling was also observed near the carpus. Immobilization was achieved with 20 mg Etorphine, and the animal was fully sedated after 8 minutes. The bull was found to have an old, shallow wound at the carpus that was healing. It was suspected that an arrow had inflicted the injury. The wound was flushed with Hydrogen peroxide, cleaned with water, disinfected with Iodine then sprayed with Oxytetracycline antibiotic topically. 30,000 mg broad-spectrum Amoxicillin antibiotic and 5000 mg Flunixin meglumine anti-inflammatory were also administered intramuscularly. Anaesthesia was reversed with 66 mg Diprenorphine injected intravenously through a prominent ear vein. The team watched as the bull stood and headed into the wild.

Prognosis

The elephant bull has a good prognosis.

Elephant Human – Wildlife Conflict Toroto, Emali

A KWS patrol team found an elephant bull carcass directly below an electricity transmission line in the Emali Area. The Tsavo Mobile Veterinary Unit was informed and requested to carry out an autopsy to determine the cause of death.

General Post-mortem findings

The carcass was found in right lateral recumbency, it was heavily bloated and intact save for both tusks which had been removed by KWS security personnel for accounting and safe custody. A 3-phase power line was directly above the carcass with one of the lines hanging low. The remains of an old elephant carcass were seen in the vicinity. There were no signs of struggle at the scene; this was a case of sudden death. The elephant appeared to have been in good body condition before death (body score of 4.5 out of 5 where 1 is poor and 5 is good). Excessive bloating was evident with whole carcass muscle rigidity. Singeing of hairs on the trunk was observed along with singe marks on the distal trunk with burns on both soles of the front limbs.

Specific post-mortem findings

The carcass had good muscle and fat cover. There was thin flowing blood on opening the carcass. There was clear post-mortem distention of the entire gastrointestinal tract. There was normal ingesta in the stomach (both in quality and quantity). There was congestion of mucous membranes and blood capillaries. Poorly clotted blood was evident with extravasation in the muscles at the neck and lower abdominal region. There was excessive muscle oedema. There was congestion and oedema on the perineal region. Apart from general congestion all organs appeared normal in shape and texture. No other changes were seen in all the other systems.

Cause of death

Based on the history, physical and post-mortem examination the elephant died suddenly from electrocution. This was caused by the low hanging electricity transmission line that the elephant innocently touched with its trunk. The old elephant carcass remnant may have been from a victim that suffered a similar fate more than a year ago. To stop similar occurrences in future, the low hanging power line need to be fixed.